Introducing a groundbreaking technique that seamlessly merges computer-generated and hand-drawn animation techniques, first-time director John Kahrs takes the art of animation in a bold new direction with the Oscar®-nominated short, "Paperman."

Using a minimalist black-and-white style, the short follows the story of a lonely young man in mid-century New York City, whose destiny takes an unexpected turn after a chance meeting with a beautiful woman on his morning commute.

Convinced the girl of his dreams is gone forever, he gets a second chance when he spots her in a skyscraper window across the avenue from his office. With only his heart, imagination and a stack of papers to get her attention, his efforts are no match for what the fates have in store for him.

Created by a small, innovative team working at Walt Disney Animation Studios, "Paperman" pushes the animation medium in an exciting new direction.

From the D23 blog:
Director John Kahrs began thinking about the basic premise for Paperman back in the early 1990s when he lived in New York City and commuted 38 miles each way to his job as an animator at Blue Sky Studios in Westchester County. “New York can be an intimidating place,” John says. “People tend to have their guard up when they’re going about their daily routine.

I can remember being on the train wishing I could make a connection with someone and have more of a social life. I would come back through Grand Central Station and go straight home. I kept thinking, ‘Here I am in the most amazing city in the world, and I’m just holed up in my apartment.’ Sometimes on my commute, I would see somebody and make eye contact and then that person would be gone forever. I started wondering what if that person was the one for me.

“I also began thinking about the notion of how a couple with a romantic connection would communicate across the big city,” John continues. “And this idea of throwing a paper airplane from one skyscraper to another was the visual hook that really got my gears turning. I started focusing on how this guy could reconnect with a girl he had made a connection with.”

John moved to California in 1997 to work for Pixar Animation Studios; the idea for Paperman continued to intrigue him. He developed it as a short film and edited together a rough version, but it wasn’t until he came to Disney in 2007 and completed his assignment as a supervising animator on the studio’s 2010 hit feature Tangled that things began to happen. Encouraged by the directors of Tangled, Nathan Greno and Byron Howard, and inspired by the artistic guidance of legendary Disney animator Glen Keane, John began to see new possibilities for bringing Paperman to the big screen.

The contemporary so-ro cradle (the name so-ro comes from Norwegian lullabies) was designed by occupational therapist Ane Lillian Tveit and features a forward rocking motion, unlike most of today's side-to-side rocking cradles.

According to research into the brain's perception of sensory input, forward movement is the most comfortable and soothing type of motion for a baby. Think of rocking on a swing. The brain perceives this rhythmic forward swinging as a linear, soothing motion.

This multiple-awarded winning cradle has even garnered a celebrity following from famous parents like Ben Affleck, Jennifer Garner, Jason Bateman and NASCAR driver Burney Lamar.

The so-ro cradle is available as a single cradle or a twin cradle with a core of the made of plywood Baltic birch with American walnut or laminated white. The value of the so-ro is increased by virtue of it being easy to assemble, disassemble and store.

The So-Ro Cradle in Walnut or White Laminate:
•Made of American walnut real wood veneer on plywood Baltic birch
•43 " long and 25 " tall and weights 40 lbs
•The included mattress is 17 " wide x 31 " long and 1 " thick
•Included mattress cover is made of 100% cotton
•Shipping and handling included in price ($800 USD)

The So-Ro Twin Cradle in Walnut or White Laminate:

With dividing wall:
Without dividing wall:
In white laminate:

•Made with American walnut real wood veneer on plywood Baltic birch
•The so-ro cradle is 43 " long and 25 " tall and weights 40 lbs
•The two included mattresses are 15,5 " wide x 31 " long and 1 " thick
•Included mattress cover are made of 100% cotton
•There is a dividing wall to separate the children when needed
•Shipping and handling included in price ($1200 USD)

Video:

music in the above video is the traditional Norwegian folktune named "so-ro," hence the name of the company. The pianist is Bugge Wesseltoft.

Importance of oxygen
With three grades of elevation at the head, the so-ro crib helps to maintain a clear, unobstructed environment around the infant’s head. This promotes healthy breathing, and is especially helpful for infants with colds or stuffy noses.

The so-ro crib's mattress is 1 inch (2.5 cm), the American ASTM standard for infant mattress sizes. This eliminates the indentation on the mattress usually caused by the weight of the infant's head. It is recommended that the infant sleeps without a pillow.

Safety
The so-ro cradle’s design makes it suitable for the bedroom at night and for the living room during the day. As for all cradles, it is suitable for use from birth until the infant is crawling (usually from 0 to 6 months).

The so-ro cradle rocks in a gentle and stable manner, with very little effort. The cradle can be turned over only when one end is lifted up. An adult can stand in the cradle without tipping the cradle over.

Kelvin Okafor describes himself as a "Passionate penciled artist. Highly interested in detail and precision." I'd say that's an understatement once you see the phenomenally realistic graphite drawings created by this UK Illustrator. As astounding as the finished pieces are (it's truly difficult to discern whether or not they are photographs until you look extremely closely), the evolution of the drawings shown on his blog, and as videos on his YouTube channel, will blow your mind.

above, clockwise from top left: Timeless, Undeviating and Mana drawings by Kelvin Okafor

I'm sharing my five favorite finished works of his along with some images of his work in progress for you to see what I'm talking about. He almost always begins with the eyes and finishes with the clothing. His ability to render hair is beyond compare. My mind is blown and after viewing these yours will be, too.

above: the bottle of Precious Vodka shown has a genuine ruby gemstone you can see at the very top of the bottle

Jewel Lines® has produced a unique combination of Ultra-Premium Vodka with the most valuable natural precious stones in the world. The award-winning vodka (recipient of the Silver Medal San Francisco Awards in 2011) is bottled in a luxury diamond shaped container complete with a single real gemstone.

Precious Vodka is produced from distiller grown and harvested winter wheat and nourished with post glacial subterranean spring water. The wheat used in Precious Vodka is carefully selected with only the top 10% of the annual harvest making it to the distillation process. From there their master distiller distills 6 times then dilutes with locally sourced natural spring water. The water is high in mineral content and adds a very strong, yet natural citric aromatic nose and flavour that is Precious Vodka.

Precious Vodka is bottled in a unique diamond shaped bottle. Every bottle of Precious Vodka contains a beautiful natural gemstone from their collection of fully certifiable precious stones which include sapphire, emerald, ruby, topaz, and peridot. Their gemstones are specially crafted so that their customers receive only the finest genuine jewel stones. The gemstones add a unique quality to the overall experience that is only available when you purchase a bottle of Precious Vodka.

The bottle below contains a sapphire you can see just below the tip. The bottle also has a sticker that identifies the jewel within:

Precious Vodka is unique. Extreme detail was used when creating the diamond shaped bottle and its beauty alone makes it stand out and turn heads. Great pride and care is taken to achieve the highest level of luxury in every bottle of Precious Vodka, produced in distilleries utilizing the most innovative German technology.

The edgy fashion designer from the Netherlands does it again with her latest shoe design for United Nude, part of her latest Haute Couture Collection named Voltage, all of which is shown after the shoes.The Voltage Shoes by Iris van Herpen for United Nude:
Continuing the collaboration for the seventh season, United Nude and Iris Van Herpen joined forces to create another shoe for her Haute Couture show in Paris. These handcrafted leather ankle booties were made for Van Herpen’s Voltage collection and their availability will be very limited.

For her fourth collection presented in Paris as a guest member of the Chambre Syndicale de la Haute Couture, Iris van Herpen explores the idea of electricity and the light it creates. Experimenting with its use in the field of creation, this collection seeks to render its tangible movement and power.

This light and electricity’s ability to change states and bodies is being reproduced using the most innovative technologies. Described as an alchemist fashion approach, Van Herpen’s designs perpetually initiate new collaborations with artists, architects and researchers.

As part of the show there was a performance arranged by New Zealand artist Carlos Van Camp, echoing his notion of controlling high voltage electricity and its interaction with the human body. Van Camp became known for founding “The Lords of Lightning,” an innovative show that depicts two fighters exchanging real lightning with three million volts running through their bodies.

Van Herpen shares Canadian architect Philip Beesley’s fascination with materials and structures. They focus specifically on how the reaction of chemistry and electricity causes structures to respond to their environment and react as living beings.

Iris van Herpen is also know for being todays leading fashion designer in the use of 3D printing. Drawing on the idea of movement, this technical revolution is the result of collaborations with Neri Oxman Keren Oxman of the MIT Media Lab, architect Julia Koerner, and Materialise.